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TechApple

This Apple patent could change the way you use your iPhone

By
Claire Groden
Claire Groden
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By
Claire Groden
Claire Groden
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August 4, 2015, 11:05 AM ET
People Using Cellphones
Man chatting with WhatsApp application on smartphone using emoticons from personal point of view at the street.Photograph by Getty Images

Apple (AAPL) has filed a patent for a system that would recognize when an iPhone is smudged, according to Business Insider.

Currently, iPhones are unable to differentiate between smudges that block light to the phone’s sensors and other reasons why the light might be blocked, such as when the user is talking on the phone and it is held to the user’s ear. Smudges to the phone can dim the screen accidentally, mimicking the dimming that occurs during a phone call.

The new system would be able to identify different types of smudges and make sure that they don’t interfere with the normal lighting of a phone.

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